


A Matter of Time

by Peggystormborn



Series: Every Time...A Karamel Anthology [26]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst, Don't hate me if the time travel stuff isn't quite right, F/M, Future Fic, KaraMel, Time Travel, it never makes any sense regardless so whatever
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-06-26 16:06:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19771711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peggystormborn/pseuds/Peggystormborn
Summary: When the Legion came to 2017, they brought news of a looming extinction event in 2455.Now that once-distant future has arrived, and Kara and Mon-El face an impossible decision: save the world from what they know is coming, even if it means jeopardizing the 31st century as they knew it?Thankfully, they get some help from the Legends of Tomorrow.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So as any long-term readers of this series know, I'm ignoring season 4 altogether (though it's canon compliant through s3). That, generally speaking, goes for the rest of the arrowverse as well. However, this season of legends of tomorrow was wonderfully insane and hilarious, and I've decided to borrow one scene in particular, as well as a few other nuggets from canon. I'm being intentionally vague on the timeline and how it might fit into my own canon. So make of that what you will. Enjoy!
> 
> For anyone new: 
> 
> Kara and Mon-El spent 10 years in the 31st century, where they had four children: Allie, Xander, Zora and John.
> 
> Their family grew and went on to found a society of heroes, with a headquarters in Washington, DC. 
> 
> Clark and Lois had a son, Jonathan. 
> 
> Music Meister and Mxyzptlyk have been covertly helping them behind the scenes. Mxy is a begrudging participant in all this.
> 
> Kara dated Ray Palmer briefly.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Mon-El are faced with a decision they've been putting off for a long time.

Side by side and coffee cups in hand, they alight on the plaza outside their office, per their normal routine. It's bustling, as it always is. Caped figures in red and blue come and go--plus a few in other shades, since the group has been joined by metahumans and other powered aliens over years--most touching down for a landing and entering the facility on foot. A few take to the skies for parts unknown. Perhaps a meeting, perhaps a natural disaster halfway across the planet. Kara won't know for certain until she sits down to read the morning briefing. As they cross toward the main entrance, a transmat portal on their left activates, and two similarly young-looking women with long, wavy, light brown hair emerge. Kara and Mon-El nod a greeting to Clara and Jordan, their nine-times great granddaughters, through their son Xander. Both women are named after Kryptonians: Clark and Jor-El, respectively. It's become a time-honored tradition, weaving the old with the new. 

Well, not _new_ , not really anyway. Their family's presence on Earth--which began with Kal-El's fateful crashdown in that Kansas cornfield, and continued with Kara and her children--now spans the better part of five centuries, and has culminated in the existence of a grand society of sorts, comprised of many thousands of superpowered descendants.

Kara went through the roster and counted once: she now has 308 offspring of various ages named after her; 267 named for her husband, and, somewhat gallingly, 415 named for Clark. Though that's including both the Clarks and the Kal-Els, so it really shouldn't count, right? 

There are even more, bearing the monikers of her four children, her sister Alex, her and Clark's Kryptonian parents, as well as her Earth parents, Eliza and Jeremiah. Plus a number named for the gods they worshipped on their home planets: Rao, Cythonna, Yuda, Lorra. There are even a handful of Rheas and Lar Gands roaming around the complex, which Kara knows is somewhat gratifying for her husband. Despite the fact that Kara's late in-laws weren't exactly remembered for their nobility and virtue, she and Mon-El are both comforted by the reminder that part of Daxam lives on through their family. 

They traverse the main floor of the building, framed by spikes of rock on all sides with a translucent crystalline lattice structure above their heads to allow natural sunlight in. Though they've retrofitted in some "human" additions, such as stairs and an elevator for the few flightless denizens of the compound, the place is recognizably Kryptonian. But despite its jagged, alien appearance, it's a far cry from the Arctic ice palace Clark created all those years ago. This place is not intended for solitude. 

This is their Fortress of Fellowship. 

They reach the far end of the atrium, waving a friendly _good morning_ to a clump of their littlest progeny being herded off to the building's on-site elementary school. Kara's young assistant, Daniel (who also happens to be her 11 times removed great grandson, through her daughter Allie) hands her a holo-tab, which displays her schedule for the day. Mon-El receives an identical device, and the three supers float in unison up to the top level of the facility, where the matriarch and patriarch of the family share an office. Daniel gives them a quick rundown of the morning ahead, and leaves them with their youngest son, John. 

"So, as you can see, the situations on Starhaven and Xolnar are resolving, and we've sent representatives to H'Iven to deal with the outbreak there," the Daxatonian explains. 

"What's the status of the uprising on Earth-29?" Mon-El wonders. 

"Right now it's a waiting game. The equivalent of the U.N. there has asked us to defer action as long as peace talks are ongoing."

"All right. But let's have a delegation on standby in case things escalate," Kara determines, signing the order with a flick of her holographic stylus. "And remind both parties of our interdimensional sovereignty doctrine."

"Done," John says, grabbing the holo-tab from his mother. "Oh, and the draft agenda for the next All Hands Assembly is in your inbox." He turns on his heel, walking in quick step over to the ledge that oversees the main floor.

"My inbox?" Kara perks up, sensing something is off. She speeds over to block John's escape, grabbing back the device from his hands instead of activating the larger version on her desk top. "Why don't we just go over it now?"

She walks back toward her desk and sits, as her husband leans to peer over her shoulder at the document in question. He brushes a lock of her hair behind her ear. Hair that is now streaked with grey, to accompany the fine lines that have formed across her forehead and around her eyes. His own dark locks and beard have taken on a salt and pepper hue, though his wife likes to tell him it makes him somehow even more handsome. Distinguished, even. He mostly believes her. Mostly. Though he does, on occasion, miss the days when it seemed age would never catch up to them. 

She, of course, will always be the most beautiful woman in the multiverse to him, just as radiant at the age of 500 or so (adding in their decade in future along with the 24 years she spent in the Phantom Zone) as she was at the age of 25. And yet, he can't help but notice that in some ways they're both not quite as quick, or as inexhaustible as they used to be. Not that it matters much, since they have thousands of their progeny to do the literal heavy lifting these days. Their value to the organization lies in their leadership, for the most part. Though they still sneak out occasionally to put out fires and stop muggers and whatnot. If they can find them, that is. With an army of supers patrolling the Earth, street crime is a lot harder to come by than it used to be. 

Kara and Mon-El peruse the agenda John drafted, glancing down to the relevant item at the same time. They look at each other, then at their son. 

"NO," they say at once. 

"YES," John asserts, nodding his head of sandy curls. Being only a few decades younger than his parents, he's no spring chicken either, but despite his hundreds of years of service to their family and this organization, he can't help feeling like a defiant child whenever he butts heads with Mom and Dad. "It's time to bring everyone into the discussion. We've put this off long enough."

"We have two years left. And we haven't even located the meteor," Mon-El avers.

"Exactly," Kara agrees. "There's no reason to start a panic over possible future events when we don't even know if…" 

"That rock is coming, Mom," John reminds them. "You both know it. Hell, Dad told you all about this when he first came back from the 31st century, all those years ago. A level four extinction event, remember? This is happening. And it's time for us to start dealing with it."

"But…" Kara flops back in her plush chair, "We still have no idea what to do about it."

John exhales heavily. "I know. It's an impossible choice…"

"If we do nothing, 80% of all life on Earth dies," Kara says in a hushed monotone. 

"And if we intervene," Mon-El continues, "There are unknowable consequences for the future of the universe. We could end up bringing about some unimaginable tragic outcome we can't even contemplate right now, let alone foresee. And at the very least, it's likely erasing this event from history would result in…"

"...Negating the Legion in its entirety, jeopardizing the peace you spent all those years building, maybe even…preventing the very existence of all the people we cared about there," John finishes. 

"Imra, and Garth, and Brainy and...everyone…" Kara trails off, voice breaking. 

"And besides, we don't even know if it's possible," Mon-El says. "We have very limited information on what efforts, if any, were made in the original timeline to stop this thing. And if we succeed…"

"Then you have to finally contend with the consequences of everything you've already done," John says, his tone almost accusatory, folding his arms over his chest. "Though I feel certain that's inevitable, regardless."

"What? What do you mean?" Kara asks, bewildered. 

"You've been hiding. Using your knowledge of this event as...as a crutch. After all, what does it matter how much the timeline goes off kilter, if there's a cataclysm between you and the 31st century that's gonna wipe the slate clean?" 

"John…" his father warns. 

"But now…now there's a reckoning coming. You two came back here, to this time, had a family--a _big_ family, in point of fact--and now here we all are, changing the world and the universe, and even helping out in _other_ universes, every single day. Even if we fail to stop this thing, we know humanity survives. Stands to reason that _we_ will, too. Which means we'll be here to help rebuild in its aftermath. Think about it. What does that mean for the Legion? The conflict between Earth and Titan? Even the rise of the original Brainiac?"

Mon-El looks at his son, with defeat. "I don't know."

"Exactly," John says. "Look, we can put off making this an organization-wide discussion for a few months, maybe a year at most. But you two need to have some kind of plan to present to everyone. And you should be prepared to answer some pretty tough questions." 

"Such as…" Kara fishes, knowing her son is hinting at something.

"Whether our family's very existence has created an untenable situation with potentially disastrous consequences." 

Kara sighs heavily, slumping her shoulders a little. Anxiety rising in her, she stands up and allows her husband to enfold her in a warm embrace. Wrapping her arms around the small of his back, they melt into each other in that familiar way of theirs. 

"Maybe you should talk to Barry," Mon-El suggests. It's not a bad idea. Barry has mucked about with Earth-Prime's timeline enough to be a decent authority on the ins and outs of it all. And he knows the stakes. Even now, after hundreds of years, his Earth is still living with the consequences of his Flashpoint shenanigans. 

Kara considers whether a jaunt over to Star Labs is warranted. She's long overdue for a visit there anyway to see her long-standing superhero BFF. They'd grown even closer over the centuries, bonded by their shared destiny as semi-immortal heroes, fated to go on long after losing so many of their loved ones to the ravages of time. There's a long-running joke between them that someday it'll just be the two of them (plus Mon-El, as they'll need someone to do the cooking, after all) shacking up in a superhero retirement home somewhere. It won't be the same without Oliver, so they'll have to have him cloned somehow. Felicity would have kept his DNA on file, right? 

Gallows humor notwithstanding, she's often thought to herself, secretly, about the cruelty and unfairness of their respective universes; expecting so much of them, imposing unfathomable losses upon them even as they've given so much.

_But_. They have each other. And they both have their families, their lineage. Barry and Iris' speedster twins had, like her own children, branched into a sizable family tree, and there's even been some super-speedster intermarriage throughout the generations. She and Mon-El just last week went to the infirmary to see one of their newest family additions, a bouncing baby boy named Henry, who was born to Kara and Mon-El's great granddaughter Thara, 13 times removed, and Barry's great grandson Jay, 12 times removed. 

Although she does long to see her best friend--her oldest remaining friend, actually, not counting Clark and J'onn--another thought occurs to her. 

"Actually, I think I know someone else we should talk to," she mumbles into the safety of her husband's chest. 

"Who?" he wonders. "Wait…you don't mean…"

Kara groans and rolls her eyes. "Still? Really? I dated him more than four hundred years ago, and he's been dead since 2064. Besides, it's not just him I want to talk to. It's all of them."

Mon-El shrugs, only slightly grumpy about the situation. "Fine. But wait, how are we gonna…"

"Get there? I still have that old time courier he gave me. It's in cold storage, in the sub-basement."

"Are you sure it still works? I don't want to accidentally end up in the Dark Ages or something."

"It'll be fine, Mon-El," she says. "We'll...we'll find some way to make sure everything turns out fine."

********

They step through the portal onto the Waverider. At least, they think it's the Waverider, but it's difficult to be sure since they find themselves immersed in near-total darkness. 

"Uhhh...where are…" Mon-El starts, until they notice three shadowed figures, backlit by a spotlight, hair...or hood, as the case may be... blowing in the wind. 

_Wind_? Kara wonders. _We should be indoors…_

They hear a dramatic voice booming in the darkness. 

" _When the world needs heroes, they answer the call..._ "

"We'll be at _Heyworld_!" one of the figures trills, a giggle seeping into her tone as her blond hair and eerily familiar red cape flutter in the breeze. "The new adventure capital of Eastern Maryland!"

"What the hell?" Kara whispers, suddenly concerned she's just created a time remnant of herself. She looks at Mon-El, whose worried expression indicates he's thinking the exact same thing. Until she realizes…

"Wait...I don't sound like that...do I?"

"Uh...no," her husband assures her. "Not even a little."

"Where we will hit fun...in the bullseye!" the middle figure says, with an obviously forced growl.

"Hold on a second…" Kara starts, still whispering. "That's not…"

"And we'll give your children a...Flash! Of excitement!" the third silhouette exclaims.

"...Barry and Oliver…" she finishes, with a sigh. "I think I know what we've walked into…"

"And...cut!" a blonde woman yells.

"That was a good take!" Sara says, to her green and red clad partners.

"That was a _great_ take!" Nate replies.

"Guys," Zari interjects. "I feel like that would have worked a little bit better with the real Trinity."

"Yeah, well, I asked," Sara argues. "And they said... _hard_ pass."

"We should have done the crossover," Nate sighs.

"Yeah," Sara nods, under her breath.

"You _definitely_ should have," Kara calls out. "My suit looks pretty good on you by the way, Sara."

" _Shit_!" Nate responds, clutching his chest, as Sara reflexively goes into a defensive pose, and Gary trips over the step behind him and falls square onto his ass.

"Jesus freaking Christ…Kara? Is that you?" Sara asks.

"Yup. Hi, Sara. You know my husband, Mon-El, right?"

"Uh…your husband…" Sara and Nate look at her with confusion. Gary, being Gary, just stands there smiling like a doofus.

"...Ah. Guess we must have come back before all that," Kara nods at them. 

"What, did you pick this date at random?" the Daxamite teases.

"No, but it's hard to remember back that far, okay? It's been a minute."

"Um, Kara?" Zari dips a toe into the conversation. "Are you...okay? Don't take this the wrong way, but you look kind of…"

"...Old?" Kara finishes.

"No! No, just…ummm…"

"Okay, _I_ for one think you look _radiant,_ Kara," Nate offers, diplomatically. 

"Well, we're from nearly five hundred years in the future, so 'old' doesn't feel entirely inappropriate," Kara snickers. 

"Holy shit, you're _five hundred_?!" Nate stammers. "Damn, girl! I was just being nice before but in that case you look... _wow_."

"I second that," Sara agrees, looking her friend up and down. "Still got it."

"Yeah, when five hundred years old _we_ reach, look as good _we_ will not," Nate does a passable Yoda impression, as Zari and Ava roll their eyes. "What?" he continues, holding it his hands, palms up. "Ray's not here, _someone_ had to say it." 

"Uh...well, thanks, I guess," Kara half-smiles at the assemblage of her long-lost friends. "It's... _really_ good to see all of you. It's...been a while. Obviously. So...where _is_ Ray?" she looks around for her ex, wondering if he actually even _is_ her ex in this part of the timeline. 

"Ray? Oh. He's, uh…indisposed…" Nate explains, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. 

"Indisposed?" Kara wonders.

"He's come down with a slight case of evil," Zari clarifies. 

"Oh, riiiiight," Kara nods, memory jogged. " _That_ whole thing."

"Well, since you forgot about it I guess we can assume he's not gonna be permanently demon-ized, then?" Ava wonders. 

"Uh, no," Kara confirms. "But you won't remember I said that, because we're gonna have to mind wipe everyone as we're leaving so we don't mess everything up. Hope that's okay."

"Oh, yeah, that's cool. We know the drill," Nate brushes by her concerns with a literal hand wave. "Time travel gurus right here." He points his thumbs at himself, to punctuate his assertion. 

"That's why we came, actually," Mon-El explains. "We need some advice."

"On what?" Sara asks. 

"Time-travel-related foreknowledge of an imminent apocalypse," Kara sighs heavily. 

"Oh, maaaan," Nate groans. "I _hate_ when that happens." The others nod along in agreement, which both supers on the ship find reassuring. 

They gather round their common table as the two aliens explain the situation in detail. The massive rock hurtling towards Earth-38; the delicate peace they worked so hard to create in the 31st century; the fate of their many friends there; and, most worryingly, their fears about whether an intervention now might ultimately bring about something even worse somewhere down the road.

"Plus there's the whole ball kick paradox thing," Zari adds. "Kind of a biggie."

"...Ball kick paradox?" Mon-El asks at length, when no further elucidation is forthcoming. 

"Oh, yeah," Sara explains. "You can't go back in time and kick your father in the balls. Because then you wouldn't exist to go back in time and kick your father in the balls."

"...Why...uh...exactly is someone kicking their father in the balls in this hypothetical scenario?" Kara asks.

"Not hypothetical. John actually tried that once," Sara clarifies. 

"My son did _what_?!" Kara gasps.

"I think they mean that guy in the trench coat," Mon-El says.

"Oh. Right, _that_ guy," Kara exhales, remembering. "He kicked his father in the balls? Why?"

"Uh... _tried_ to kick his Dad in the balls. Because self-loathing. You've met the guy, right?" Zari snarks. 

"It's...been a minute," Kara says awkwardly. 

"Mmkay...can we loop back to where you said you have a son?" Nate asks. "When did _that_ happen?"

"Uh, about six hundred years from now," Mon-El answers. "Or... _our_ now, not yours. All our kids were born in the future we're trying to protect. That's part of why we're so concerned, you know?"

"These are the kids I helped when they accidentally time traveled back to 2017, right?" Sara tentatively asks. " _That_ part of the story hasn't changed, has it?" 

"That's them," Kara answers. "And thank you, again, for that. Past me will send you a nice floral arrangement when I eventually find out about it."

"Okaaaaay...so wait, exactly how many offspring do you _have_?" Zari inquires.

"Offspring? Uh, as of last week," Kara looks at the ceiling, tapping her finger against her chin. "The grand total stands at thirty thousand five hundred and twelve."

The Legends stand there staring blankly at her for a good ten seconds, while her husband sits quietly, hands crossed over his chest, laughing internally at their silence. 

"Wait, _what_?" Nate finally says. 

"Well, two sons and two daughters, and then, you know, a dozen or so generations later...I mean, do the math…" she shrugs. "We're organized as a society of sorts, dedicated to protecting all life."

"Holy shit, you're like Jedi…" Nate gasps, slightly awestruck. 

"Uh...sort of...I guess?" Mon-El scratches his chin. 

"Right...uh, so, to recap," Ava exhales, "You two spawned a whole huge mess of supers, the first four of whom were born in the distant future, and now you're trying to figure out whether to stop a mass extinction that you only know about...because you learned about it in that future?"

"That's about it," Mon-El answers sadly. "It's a mess, we know."

"I mean, look, we _have_ to stop it, right?" Kara argues, more to herself than anyone else. "We can't just…let it _happen._ We're heroes. That's what we do. But…"

"I know. You're scared," Sara says softly. "Changing the timeline is not a small thing…and I'll be honest, a lot of the stuff we've fixed, we more or less managed through dumb luck. And at times we've even created aberrations...like Stein's daughter. She wasn't in the original timeline, and now she's got a husband, and kids of her own. If we were following our own mission to the letter, we probably should have gone back and erased her. But…we just...couldn't. She's innocent, and a good person, and honestly I think our Earth is a better place with her in it."

"Yeah, you know our motto. Sometimes we screw things up for the better!" Nate smiles at them, before he reads the room and his face drops. "But...yeah, we've basically fallen ass backwards into a lot of our big saves."

"Look, I realize that's not particularly helpful," Sara puts a hand on Kara's shoulder. "But…I'll say this. Certain things are...inevitable. Like history... _wants_ to play out a certain way. And no matter how hard you try to change them, you just...can't. So…"

"So stopping this thing may be impossible?" Mon-El asks, deflating. 

" _Or_...maybe this great future you create, the Legion and all that, is going to happen no matter what," Zari reassures. "Predestination or whatever you want to call it...it doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing."

"I hope you're right," Kara nods at her friends, then looks at her husband. "I guess that means we…start planning. And the two of us need to figure out how to push this thing off its collision course with Earth. Preferably without getting killed ourselves. I guess we'll need space flight suits, yellow sun boosters, maybe even artificial gravity, since our flight powers normally rely on..."

"Wait…Kara...you're not planning to stop that rock yourself, are you?" Ava interrupts. 

"Well, yeah, I mean of course we are. Why wouldn't we?"

"Ball kick paradox, remember?" Zari prompts. "If you guys change the future, the one you lived in for all those years, then what happens to _your_ history? Your past selves would end up traveling to a different 31st century. Maybe one that doesn't _need_ you to fix it. Maybe one where you don't stick around for ten years and…"

"...Have children…" Kara finishes, heart sinking precipitously. 

"Wait, so you're saying we could...negate our own _family_?" Mon-El wonders. "Meaning...all thirty thousand of us?"

"We're saying," Zari explains. "That you and your four kids _can't_ be the ones to do the saving this time. It won't work. If you push that asteroid off its trajectory, then you mess up your own future timeline, and the universe will most likely just sorta...glitch out. Like the Matrix. And Earth gets pummeled anyway. In fact, you can't even be actively present in the timeline while it's happening."

"Oh, sweet Rao," Kara fights back tears. "So…what the hell do we _do_?!"

"We can help," Sara declares. "When you're ready, we'll pick you up with the jump ship, and the six of you can hang out in the temporal zone until the new timeline sets. That way, none of you will be impacted by the changes, and that protection will pass down to all your descendants, since they were born after you came back."

Kara shakes her head in disbelief. "I can't believe this. The most important thing our family ever does, and we won't even _be_ there! We can't even _help_!" Kara lets the dam break. Her husband follows suit, taking her into his arms. 

"Kara, if there are thousands of you, then aren't there plenty of people who can deal with this thing?" Nate poses. 

"Yes, but…Mon-El and I…we've always been the vanguard. The first to put ourselves in danger," Kara shakes her head, tearfully. "I know our family is incredibly powerful, but…we're still talking about our _children_ here. Our _babies._ We've spent the last four hundred years and change watching them grow up. And now we're supposed to what, just...send our grandkids, and their children, and their children, and on and on...just send them out there to put themselves at risk while we sit around twiddling our thumbs?"

"Yes, Kara," Sara says gently. "That's _exactly_ what you have to do."

Kara's face falls into her hands, tears flowing with abandon. She feels her husband's arms around her and Sara's hand lightly stroking her hair.

Gary--who has been lurking on the periphery throughout the conversation, cell phone in hand--finally takes the moment of silence as an opportunity to cut in. 

"...Is this a bad time to ask for a selfie with you guys?"

He looks on expectantly for far too long, toothy smile on display even as everyone in the room stares daggers in his direction. 

" _Hard_ pass," Kara deadpans. 

********

"So this is it, then," Mxyzptlyk says to his frenemy. "This is the thing you've been preparing them for, all these years."

"It is," Music Meister says curtly. "It'll be enough. Barely, but...yeah. This will work."

"I still don't understand why all this had to be so... _elaborate_. The time travel, pushing them towards other people, all for what? Not that I'm complaining about getting to watch both these idiotic mortals suffer and pine and all that. But, I mean, you could have just told them when they met that they needed to go get married and... _breed_." Mxy visibly cringes at his own implication.

"You know it's not that simple. A complex reality requires a complex fix. And besides, I'm omniscient, not omnipotent. Important distinction. I can't just _make_ things happen the way I want. You know, chaos. Free will. Infinite interconnectedness. All that stuff. All I do is... _nudge_ here and there."

"And the satisfaction you get from playing matchmaker to these lesser beings?"

"A bonus. Mostly. Although I'll admit, my kind, we get something of a...well, a bit of a... _high,_ of sorts, from watching them come together."

"...Pervert."

"Call me what you want, Mxy. But for the record, I'm not the one who gets your... _specific_ brand of enjoyment from turning people into playthings."

"Oh, yes, right, I forgot, you're better than everyone."

"Nope. Just you."

"Cheeky. So now what?"

"Now? Now nothing."

"What? We're just...done then?"

"Yup. They already have everything they need to save Earth. No more meddling. You can go home to your wife, catch a movie or...whatever you fifth-ies do for fun."

"But…"

"What?"

"...What about the future? That whole…bunch of flying ring people with the stupid white ship and all their nonsense? Come on, you're the one that exists outside time and space. You know how this turns out."

"Mxy, don't tell me you actually _care_ about the fate of these lesser beings?"

The imp scoffs at the accusation. "I just don't like being stiffed out of a proper story conclusion. Like that...show with the ice people and dragons and whatnot."

"You mean a happy ending?"

"A happy ending for me would be those two morons ceasing to exist. Particularly the Daxamite."

"Mmkay. Whatever you say, Mxy. And yes, their end will come, one day. But man, what a ride, eh? And you! You helped!" Music Meister claps his sort-of-friend on the back. "That makes you something of a hero yourself, you know."

Taken aback, Mxyzptlyk shrugs and looks at his shiny black shoes, in an uncharacteristic display of modesty. "Well…can't let the lesser beings have all the glory, can we?" 

"They'll be okay. Everyone will." 

"You know, you could at least tell them they're doing the right thing here."

"No can do. Free will. It has to be their decision."

"Is it really free will if you're manipulating them into it?"

"Yes and no. But mostly yes."

"I suppose."

"Anyway, it's been real, Mxy. I'll see you around. Stay out of trouble, will you?"

"Ha! Good one."

Music Meister exhales heavily. "Well then...just don't screw anything up." He doffs an invisible cap as he begins to fade away. 

"Wait! Can't you just bloody tell me? What happens to the damn Legion?"

"Ugh, fine," the pocket-squared man in black rolls his eyes. "Have a look."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay hope this isn't too hard to follow! 
> 
> I just really thought it would be interesting given their long lifespans and future knowledge. And hey, the extinction event thing is canon. For what it's worth.

Kara and Mon-El return to their home, which resides on the same plot of land in Midvale where their children grew up. Their house, having originally been constructed in 1953, didn't age quite as well as they did. So they rebuilt on the site, with stone and other materials they knew would stand the test of time. They had stopped bothering with secret identities at long last, so there was no more need to keep moving and switching jobs every decade and change. And thank goodness, since living that life had become, over time, emotionally draining for both of them.

And so the house was built to last. Big, and strong, to match their family. Plus they added a swimming pool, just for fun. Kara and Mon-El could afford it, after all. Ever the practical Kryptonian--though the practice was eventually adopted by her Daxamite husband as well--she'd been squirreling away a nest egg since childhood. Since the day she found out she was likely to live for several hundred years, in fact. A nest egg that over time had grown into a sizable endowment for their organizational efforts, supplementing their public funding. 

She began to limit her personal expenditures from the fund once their headquarters was built, but occasionally made exceptions for necessities. Their home certainly counted as necessary. And it _was_ her money, after all. 

They built larger this time. Room enough for all their children and grandkids to visit at once. Though as the generations went on, their family unit overflowed the big house on holidays, and eventually the younger members--many of whom had relocated around the world, even across the universe--began to splinter off into their own family spheres. 

Most of the time these days, Kara and Mon-El come home to the house empty. Just the two of them. They miss the bustle and noise of having everyone under the same roof. Though she supposes they get plenty of that sort of thing during their work day.

It's not the same, though. Not like snuggling on the couch with grandchildren and watching movies, or seeing her husband plate up a meal for all of them to share together. Although she cherishes the fact that they've had the unparalleled opportunity to watch their family grow and continue over the centuries, she also sees now there's a certain loneliness to their longevity. 

She misses their _first_ Earth family. Eliza, Jeremiah, Winn and Eve, James and Lena...

...Alex. 

They walk in the front door, still clad in their red and blue suits. Still a bit dazed from the revelations of the day. Hearts still aching. 

Kara, half on autopilot, heads down the stairs to the basement. Mon-El robotically follows.

She walks over to an old armoire they keep there, opens the door, rummages through the dusty collection of gadgets and knick knacks from ages past, and retrieves a particular item. 

She places it on the floor a few feet ahead of them, and the holographic image blares to life. 

"Hey, guys! What's shakin'?" the image of their old friend beams at them. 

"Hey, Winn," Kara attempts a half-hearted smile. Though she's certain she's managing a quarter heart, at most. "It's good to see you."

The image of Winn folds his arms over his chest and quirks his head to one side. "Good to be seen. So…judging by the looks on your faces, I presume this visit isn't just for the sake of nostalgia."

"No." Mon-El shakes his head sadly. 

"Right," not-Winn says. "About that time, I suppose. I gotta say I was sort of expecting this."

"Really?" Kara asks. 

"Well, the _real_ Winn would have been, at least," it answers. 

Kara hesitates for a moment. "No offense, but I kind of wish the _real_ Winn was here right now."

"No offense taken. And none back at you either, but…if he actually _was_ here, he'd sure miss his wife and daughters a hell of a lot. I'm at least programmed not to feel sad about that. Look, I know I'm just a copy, but Brainy programmed me to be as much like him in thoughts and mannerisms as possible, so...I assume you're here because you made a decision about what's coming, and you want to hear me say it's the right one. Am I in the ballpark?"

"Basically," Kara replies. "We're going to stop it. We have... _most_ of a plan."

"Right. Well, I'm not like Gideon, I'm not capable of analyzing the timeline. I can only make predictive estimates. And I can tell you with current resources there's a ninety-three percent chance of successfully stopping the meteor from hitting Earth."

"Resources?" Kara balks.

"That's the euphemism Brainy programmed me to use to describe your extended family."

They both drop their heads at that. "So there's a seven percent chance of failure?" Mon-El asks. 

"Yes," fake Winn replies. 

"But if we do succeed, everyone survives? _Including_ our family?" Kara wonders.

"Even if Earth is saved, casualties are a possibility for anyone that goes out there to stop it. I can't accurately predict losses, but I can tell you that paradoxically, the more individuals are involved, the better the odds are of everyone coming back. This will require a _major_ effort. Far more than you had available to you in the original timeline, Supergirl."

"Wait, wait...I thought we didn't _know_ what happened in the original timeline?" Kara stops short. "All that information was lost in the wake of the destruction, wasn't it?"

"No. Not all of it. I have some key details about your involvement in the effort to stop the event."

"But…then why didn't you tell us sooner? We've asked you before. We've been trying to figure out what to do about this for _centuries!_ "

"I was instructed to withhold this information until you'd already made your decision."

"But...why?"

"Because this is how you died, Kara." The image of Winn looks at them with something that might be mistaken for sympathy, if one didn't already know they were talking to a holographic construct with their dead friend's face.

"What?" Mon-El looks up, horrified. "This is what…she... _no_ …" He rubs his temples, trying to process this. "No. It can't be. Brainy said we didn't know…"

"Mon-El…" Kara rests her hand on her husband's shoulder. 

The Daxamite inhales deeply, and shakes his head. "He lied to me. Again."

"Prior knowledge of your own death is...kind of a big time travel no-no," not-Winn says. "He had to."

"But it doesn't matter now," Kara says softly. "Because it's not going to happen. Because I won't be there."

"Exactly," the construct nods at them. "So now I can tell you that you went out there, alone, knowing your strength wouldn't be enough. Not nearly enough."

"What about Clark?" Mon-El asks. 

"She made him stay in the Fortress," not-Winn answers. "To survive the fallout. Knowing that Earth would need him. He fought her, demanded to go with her, but..."

"...He agreed in the end. Because he had Jonathan to think about," Kara feels a tear rolling down her face.

"That's correct. He and Lois weren't nearly as, um... _fruitful_ as the two of you. They just had the one child, and he ended up living on Argo. I guess after his mother died, he wanted to be with people like him, whereas in _this_ timeline…"

"...He already _had_ a lot of people like him on Earth," Kara finishes. "So…I guess this means I never would have had a family if Mon-El hadn't come back."

Not-Winn shakes his head. "No. You never married, never had children."

"I spent my life alone. Just like I always expected. And I died alone, too. Out in space somewhere, failing to save Earth."

"Basically," the image of their friend nods.

She looks up at Mon-El, who has trails of tears spilling down each of his cheeks. His eyes meet hers, and he reaches to cup her face in his hands. "I'm so sorry…" he says.

"No, my love, this is _good_ news." She attempts a bleak smile. 

"How?" he wonders, still gazing at her with centuries worth of love and sorrow in his eyes.

"Because you _saved_ me," she says simply. "You saved me from a lifetime of loneliness. You saved me by loving me."

"We saved each other," he croaks. "I never, _ever_ would have stopped loving you. My heart would have belonged to you forever."

"And now our love...and the products of our love...will save the world."

He chokes back a sob. "I hope you're right."

"I am. Don't you see? It's all part of Rao's plan. We were meant to have each other, to have this family. And now we just need to...have a little faith."

"I have faith in _you._ Always."

She wraps her arms around him, and they stand there for long moments, breathing each other in. 

"There's just one more thing, Winn," he says at length over Kara's shoulder, to the hologram still flickering before them. 

"What's that, buddy?"

Mon-El can't help but crack a smile at this. Even now, even in this form, their dear friend knows how to bring them out of a funk.

"What about the Legion? Imra, Brainy?"

"I don't have enough data to extrapolate that far into the future. I don't know what will happen to them."

"I understand, but…shouldn't we...I don't know…feels like we should ask their permission? Since we're putting their future, their very _existence_ at risk."

"Ah. Well, Brainy knew you would ask about that. And he said it should be up to you. After all, they didn't ask you when they dragged you back here to this time."

"They weren't risking my life doing that."

Artificial Winn appears to consider this. "Debatable. Time travel poses all kinds of perils, after all. And they also weren't faced with quite the same choice you are. _But_...they trust you two to make the right decision. And hey, if they blink out of existence, at least they ain't gonna be around to get mad about it, right?" The construct looks at the two of them expectantly. 

Mon-El and Kara just stare at him, and sigh. 

"Huh," he says. "Tough room. Would you perhaps buy that maybe my humor chip is on the fritz?" 

"We miss you, buddy," Mon-El finally says, as Kara reaches for his hand. 

"I know," fake Winn replies. 

If they didn't know better, they could almost believe this version of Winn was the real thing, standing there with eyes welling. 

Kara decides to pretend, just for a moment, that it is. 

"I love you, Winn," she manages. Barely. "I will see you again, one day. In Rao's light." 

After all, he may not be Kryptonian by blood, but if any human in history had ever earned their Lord's favor, it would be Winn. 

********

They gather just before dawn, hovering in unison in the air around their Fortress. The not-icy one. Kara, clad in white with her glyph emblazoned on her chest, looks down to see some of the young children--those who've developed flight already--breaking formation to swoop down and dip their toes into the Potomac. She hears splashing, and some scolding from their parents, as they reluctantly, grumpily, rejoin the group. 

Her great great great granddaughter Telle rises just above them to conduct the invocation. She's joined by her aunt Cynthia, who brandishes a banner bearing a vibrant red flamebird. The sigil of the religious guild on Krypton. There are no actual guilds here on Earth to speak of, but they've resurrected some of Krypton's symbols and traditions. One of the younger Mon-Els, Telle's third cousin twice removed, holds up another banner bearing the likeness of an encircled humanoid form, akin to a simplified version of Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man. A stick figure rendition. It's an ancient Daxamite symbol representing the inherent value of sentient life. A reminder of their shared responsibility and mission. 

The flamebird, by contrast, represents death and rebirth. It's fitting for the Nova Cycle celebration, the end of one revolution of Rao and the start of a new one. But today, given what's coming, and all her anxieties wrapped into that foreknowledge, Kara finds it hard to even look at the thing. The very thought of even the possibility of Earth succumbing to Krypton's fate makes her heart clench and her stomach knot. 

She takes her Mon-El's hand, as Telle begins to recite the prayer to Rao. Her other hand clasps Allie's. She gazes at her first born, the first Daxatonian in...she's not sure how long. Maybe since the divergence of their peoples, for all Kara knows. The girl who made her a mother. Then a grandmother. Then a matriarch like none other before her on Earth. 

She looks at her granddaughter Carmen hovering just ahead of them. Allie's youngest child, though she's centuries old now. The girl has her father's brown eyes, but her hair turned dark over the years. Dark like Lena's hair. Luthor features. Kara spares a prayer for the soul of her long-lost friend. And another for Lena's nephew-turned-adopted-son, A.J., who became Allie's husband, and the father of three of Kara's grandchildren, including Carmen. Though Allie eventually remarried on Argo many years after her human husband's passing, the memory of Alexander Joseph Luthor still looms large. Ironic, that the son of Lex--a man who once dedicated himself to destroying all Kryptonians--should now be a vital part of their lineage. _Maybe it_ is _fate_ , Kara thinks. _Proof that love is stronger than hate. That beauty and light will always prevail over darkness. That our family was meant to be a beacon of hope in Earth's darkest hours._

Conversation with Winn's digital likeness notwithstanding, she wonders what all her human friends might have thought about all this. Not just about the looming disaster and their plan for it, but about…everything. The mark Krypton and Daxam have made here on this planet, through their family. She ponders what the world will look like now in the 31st century. After all, she can't escape John's logic. Meteor or no meteor, their line will survive. Their family will be present six hundred years from now, during what would have been the Legion's heyday, but now will most likely be...something else. 

Alex would be proud of her. At least that much she knows without a doubt. 

"...May Rao's love cleanse us of our sins," Telle finishes. "And bless us with the strength to follow the path of righteousness. Forever and always, Rao's will be done. Great Mother Kara and Great Father Mon-El will now lead us in the incantation." 

The Kryptonian and the Daxamite ascend to flank their descendants. Kara glances around briefly at the throngs of humans lining the river to watch the spectacle, on the district of Columbia side as well as the Virginia bank. She's speaking her native tongue and has no microphone. Only those with superhearing will hear her next words. However, she also knows what she's about to divulge will become public knowledge immediately regardless. She sighs heavily, working hard to project reassurance and calm.

"Before we begin," Kara starts, "We have an important announcement to make. The fate of this planet is at stake. I will be asking for volunteers to embark upon a dangerous mission to protect Earth." 

No one speaks at this, but she feels a shift in the group's tone. A tension that wasn't there a moment ago. 

She plows forward. "But I know that we will succeed, by Rao's grace, my beloved children. I know it just as surely as I know that the dawn will break this day, and every day to come."

And break it does, the first rays of the yellow sun spilling over the horizon, illuminating all they touch. Kara's hair, backlit by the still orange-red beams, shines as it moves lightly in the morning breeze. 

It's not quite Krypton. But it's their home. 

They all join hands. Kara looks fondly at Mon-El, who half-smiles back, as they begin to sing the hymn in unison. 

********

"Do you think anyone in the universe has been married as long as we have?" Kara asks, as they lie in bed together, skin to skin, sheets tangled around them. It should be a perfect storm of comfort, getting to sleep in late, and naked at that. No one calling, no racing in to the office, nothing for them to do. Their grandchildren are running things today. After much back and forth it was ultimately agreed that it would be best if those who would actually be carrying out the mission were the ones to handle the logistics and coordination. 

It's their show now. 

"I'm not sure," her husband replies. "Do we count from our first wedding or our second?"

She pops him on the pectoral at that. "It's been four hundred and forty-four years, and you know it."

He chuckles and pulls her closer. "Well, White Martians live for centuries. Maybe not as long as J'onn will, but...they do get married. I assume some of those unions must go on quite a long time."

"I guess. Well, we're the longest-wed people on Earth, for sure."

"And the happiest." 

"If you're looking to get laid again, then tough luck. There is not enough yellow sunlight in the universe to get me to move right now."

"Well...we have to. Soon."

"I know. The kids are meeting us…"

"At the site of the old DEO building. Seemed fitting." The building was long gone now, its footprint now a commemorative park. The Department of Extranormal Operations was dismantled long ago, its functions absorbed into other agencies. Besides, much of what used to be considered extranormal was now just...normal. 

At long last, they manage the wherewithal to drag themselves up and into their supersuits. 

They all arrive at the appointed hour. Allie, Xander, Zora, John, and their parents. The younger Danverses all bear somber looks. After all, it's their children leading the charge this time. 

Mon-El looks around at the site, and despite his grief he laughs for a moment at the memory of bringing them all to this place, a clandestine government agency that also happened to provide superkid day care. He thinks about seeing them waddle around amongst the trained agents in tactical gear, hearing them fussing or crying in the background while Alex attempted in vain to go over whatever battle strategy they were working on at the moment. 

Right on time, a breach opens and the Waverider's jump ship comes through. 

"Hi, Sara," Kara says sadly. "Thanks for doing this."

"Sure thing, Supergirl. Protecting the timeline is our business. Come on in."

They embark, their nervousness palpable, and strap in. Sara closes the door behind them with a hiss and a click, and before they know it, they see waves of bright green light out the front window. 

"This is it, then?" Mon-El asks. "The temporal zone?"

"Yup," Sara replies. "Nothing to do now but wait until we get the word that meteor is taken care of."

The waiting feels interminable to them. It doesn't help that the ship is full of seven people in what amounts to a flying tin can. They can't pace, or float, or even stretch out, and they're all incredibly restless. 

Just as Kara starts to genuinely worry that things may have gone awry, the message comes though:

_METEOR SUCCESSFULLY DIVERTED. NO CASUALTIES._

The whole ship roars in celebration, as they tearfully hug each other. 

Kara cups her husband's face in her hands and kisses him with abandon, not even caring if it grosses out the kids. They're adults, and then some. They can deal. 

But Mon-El breaks away mid-kiss, clutching his head in his hands. Groaning loudly, he doubles over in pain and collapses to the floor. 

"Arrrgghhh…Oh, Rao!" he yells, to everyone's fright. His wife sits on the floor and cradles him, as their children crowd around, looking on with concern.

"Baby, what is it?" Kara attempts to soothe him, petting his hair. "What's wrong?" 

Until she feels it, too. A searing shot of pain to her head. Suddenly, she sees flashes. The Legion ship. Mon-El's return to her. There he is, sweating and gaunt, dropping his weapon and staring at her in awe as her name falls from his mouth like a prayer. 

She remembers his arms around her, his tears on her shoulder. 

His lips kissing her passionately, cupping her face in his hands with desperation. 

"What...that wasn't how it…" she says aloud. 

"Whoa, breathe, you two," Sara says, parting the small crowd bring them bottles of water, and urging them to sit back against the wall as best they can in the crowded ship. "This is normal. It happens when you change the timeline drastically. These are your memories. Of your new life, the one impacted by changing the 31st century. 

"Hold on...they won't replace our old memories, will they?" Mon-El worries. 

"No. You'll have two sets of memories. It's confusing, I know. But…it'll be okay. Now...what did you remember, just now?" She looks at Mon-El first, since he seems understandably most affected. 

"I...never married…" he starts. Kara's eyes bug out. 

"What?! We never got _married_?!" Kara starts to panic. "But it can't be! It was on Sedenach! With the staircases! And the flowers!"

"No, no, honey. Not you. Imra."

"You…didn't have to marry her?" Kara inquires, visibly relieved (and secretly elated at the turn of events). "I...guess that makes sense."

"Yeah...there was no conflict. The Legion...we still formed it, but Titan and Earth already had peace when I got there."

"So...I'm your first and only wife now?"

"Kara…"

"Okay. Sorry…was everyone...still there? In the future? Imra and Garth and Brainy?"

"Yeah. And Imra's sister, too. They were good friends and comrades. Good fighters. And you and I still went there to beat Brainiac. I think the rest is...mostly the same. Maybe..."

"Then...it worked? Everything is okay?"

Sara interjects. "It'll take some time for your memories to fully...download. Or whatever. But...I have a feeling you guys will be okay." The ship Captain smiles wryly at them. 

"See? We just needed to have a little faith," Kara lets go a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

Her husband quirks an eyebrow at her. "Is that what you prayed for?" the Daxamite wonders. "During the Nova Cycle, I mean?" 

"I didn't pray about this," Kara answers. "Just for our loved ones."

"Really?" He pulls back, surprised. "I mean, you know I'm not much for religion, that's usually your thing. What, all that stuff Winn said was enough of a sign for you?"

"I don't need signs. I already have plenty all around me, all the time. Every new child born of our blood. Every person across the universe we've helped. And you...all of you." She looks around at her family, with a world of love and pride in her watery eyes.

"I had faith, too. In you, my love," Mon-El answers. "I always have."

"Uh...guys…this is super sweet and all, but can we please go back and check on _our_ kids?" Allie implores. 

"Already on it," Sara says, settling back into the pilot's chair and programming their destination into the navigation system. 

They return to the spot where they boarded the ship, and are surprised to find the rest of the Waverider already waiting there. Zari, Nate and Ava are already standing on the grass nearby

"What the _hell_ are you guys doing?" Sara asks, her tone on the verge of accusatory. "You're supposed be on _our_ Earth."

"We just wanted to make sure it worked!" Nate defends. "But we checked, none of your kids blinked out of existence. So...all good!"

"Wait…" Kara breaks in. "That was a _possibility_?" The six supers all glare at the assembled Legends, crossing their arms in unison over their chests.

"Kara…it's okay…" Ava attempts diplomacy. 

" _Okay_ ?! How could you…I can't _believe_ you..." Kara stammers. 

"Look, we've never done something quite like this, all right?" Nate argues. "Super babies born a thousand years in the future that went back and spawned a massive freaking army of powered people? That's an aberration like we've _never_ seen before. But...we sort of just…well…"

"...We trusted that there's some amount of... _fate_ involved here. And I think it's pretty clear we were right." Zari says. 

Kara exhales and nods, deciding to just accept today as a win. A big win. She turns to Mon-El and wraps her arms around him, giving in to the relief that everything seems to have turned out all right. 

"Look...we, uh, have a surprise...to make it up to you," Nate sheepishly says. He opens the cargo door of the ship, and Kara's breath just about stops when a handful of people emerge. 

Winn. James. J'onn. The _real_ versions, not holographic. 

And Alex. 

Kara speeds to her sister, knocking the wind out of her with the force of the impact. Thank god the latter is wearing body armor. 

"Hey, little sis," the redhead finally says when she gets her breath back. "I take it you've missed me."

Kara can't do anything but nod over her sister's shoulder. 

When she's capable, the Kryptonian pulls back to see Mon-El in a group hug with the males, the kids waiting their turn. She wonders what time they pulled everyone from, since they all look pretty young. But she frankly doesn't care enough to ask just now. 

"So…you look good," Alex observes. "And I take it you just _did_ something pretty good. These guys didn't really give us a lot of details. And I had to agree to a mind wipe...which I'm honestly _not_ too thrilled about. So whatever this is, I hope it's a big deal."

"Uh... _pretty_ big, yeah." _Just the end of the world, that's all_ , she chuckles internally. 

"Guys!" Zora butts in, looking at her communicator. "I just got confirmation from Evan…" 

"Who's Evan?" Alex asks Kara.

"Her son," Kara causally replies.

"Uh huh. And...who is she?"

"My daughter."

The shellshocked look on Alex's face is one Kara wouldn't mind carving in stone for posterity. 

"Confirmation of what?" Mon-El asks his child, a little impatiently. 

"Thirty thousand, five hundred and thirteen all accounted for, including us," Xander replies, reading the message over Zora's shoulder. 

"Wait...thirteen?" John asks, looking up as he counts on his fingers. 

"Kara the twelfth had her baby this morning. A girl. Three guesses what they named her," Zora snarks. 

Their 21st century friends all turn their heads to stare blankly at the Kryptonian and the Daxamite.

"It's a...really, _really_ long story," Kara finally responds, over the sound of Daxatonian snickers. "But it has a happy ending."

"Yes it does," her husband pulls her toward him and kisses the daylights out of her. 

"Uh...I... _literally_ have no idea what's going on right now," Winn says. 

"I think that's kinda the point," James responds, under his breath. "Just go with it." 

"So... _don't_ ask who the hell that guy in the red suit is that just hugged us and is now making out with the girl you're sorta almost dating?" Winn whispers back, as Kara and Mon-El continue to go at it. 

"Nope," James answers. 

"We...mighta grabbed them earlier in the timeline than we should have…" Nate notes, standing to the side with his friends. 

"Ya _think_?" Sara snipes back. 

"Meh. All's well that ends well," Zari shrugs. 

"And their future...is whatever they make it." Sara says, with a profound sense of satisfaction. 

When Kara and Mon-El finally pull away from each other, they see their family and friends gathered, smiling at them with love and affection. Until a thought occurs to Kara. 

"Hey, make me a deal," she says to her husband.

"What's that?" he answers. 

"After today... _no_ more time travel." 

" _Deal_ ," he eagerly agrees, as the two of them burst into relieved laughter. It's infectious, and soon everyone is chuckling along. 

Winn too laughs for a moment, until he stops dead. "I still have _no freaking idea_ what the hell is going on." 

"Be glad of that, son," J'onn claps him on the back reassuringly. "All you need to know is it's time to celebrate." He pulls out a bottle of champagne from somewhere, and has hands it to Kara. She tries to soak in the joy of this moment. Realizing it won't last. But for now, she knows, Earth and everyone on it are just as they should be. 

Meanwhile...somewhere outside space and time, a certain man in a black suit and red pocket square settles in for a well-deserved rest, at long last. 


End file.
